Paychex, Inc. $PAYX Stock Holdings Lowered by Capital Investment Counsel LLC

Capital Investment Counsel LLC lowered its position in shares of Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 3.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,996 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,121 shares during the period. Capital Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Paychex were worth $5,553,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Summit Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Summit Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,027 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation increased its stake in Paychex by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 2,528 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Golden State Equity Partners increased its stake in Paychex by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 7,623 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,176,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Paychex by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $492,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, King Wealth Management Group increased its stake in Paychex by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. King Wealth Management Group now owns 1,669 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Paychex news, Chairman Martin Mucci sold 97,526 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.17, for a total value of $14,157,849.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 446,917 shares in the company, valued at $64,878,940.89. This trade represents a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John B. Gibson sold 12,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.92, for a total transaction of $1,755,550.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,602,669.60. The trade was a 13.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Paychex from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $140.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Paychex from $148.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Paychex from $156.00 to $152.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays set a $155.00 target price on shares of Paychex and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $149.70.

Paychex Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PAYX opened at $139.46 on Monday. Paychex, Inc. has a twelve month low of $128.92 and a twelve month high of $161.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The company has a 50-day moving average of $142.48 and a 200-day moving average of $147.45. The firm has a market cap of $50.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.91.

Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The business services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Paychex had a net margin of 29.75% and a return on equity of 45.01%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS. Paychex has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. Analysts forecast that Paychex, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Paychex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a $1.08 dividend. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. Paychex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.53%.

Paychex Profile

Paychex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated human capital management solutions (HCM) for payroll, benefits, human resources (HR), and insurance services for small to medium-sized businesses in the United States, Europe, and India. It offers payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; and regulatory compliance services, such as new-hire reporting and garnishment processing.